About these times
Sunrise and sunset for any day, worked out from the position of the sun for the place you pick. It also gives you first and last light, solar noon, and how much daylight the day holds.
What the times mean
- Sunrise and sunset are when the top edge of the sun meets the horizon.
- First and last light are civil twilight — bright enough to see without a lamp.
- Solar noon is when the sun is highest, which is rarely 12:00 on the clock.
- The golden hour is the warm, low light photographers wait for.
Why is solar noon not at 12 o'clock?
Clock time is set by time zone, which covers a wide band of longitude, and daylight saving shifts it by another hour. Solar noon is the real astronomical midpoint of the day for your exact position.
How accurate is this?
Within a minute or so for most places. Hills, buildings and unusual weather change what you actually see on the horizon, and the further you are from the equator the more the numbers move day to day.
What happens near the poles?
In midsummer the sun never sets and in midwinter it never rises, so instead of times you get a note saying so.